bookworm

11 Great Frugal Gifts for Booklovers

Sarah Winfrey — Thu, 08 Dec 2016 11:00:07 +0000

Christmastime is here.

If you've been planning for months, this is probably a great feeling. You can relax and enjoy the decorating, the events, the lights, the parties — the whole season. But if you're not a planner, Christmas can be stressful. Instead of enjoying everything the season offers, you may end up in a panic about presents: what to buy for which person, and whether everything will arrive by Christmas Day.

While I can't tell you what to get for the gamer or gardener in your life or your favorite artist, I can help you out when it comes to buying presents for your favorite booklover. Here are some of my favorites for this year!

1. Writing Gloves

Fingerless gloves are kind of a thing right now, and these writing gloves by Storiarts help highlight a person's love of reading. Printed with text from your reader's favorite book, they are the perfect addition to a winter wardrobe. You can choose from several classic texts, or even choose the text that best typifies your relationship with your reader.

As a bonus, many readers are also writers of some form or another, and these gloves are great for keeping the hands warm while freeing the fingers to hold a pen or type.

2. Author Plushie

Does your booklover have a favorite classic author? Of course they do! Wouldn't they love to curl up with their favorite author while reading their favorite book? Bookish Freaks offers plushies of some of the most popular authors.

For the booklover who has everything, these make a fun and thoughtful gift. Show that you know your booklover well when you choose an author they love!

3. Building Stories

I almost never put actual stories on this list, but this one is an exception. Instead of a book, Building Stories is a story told through 14 different items in a box. These vary from pamphlets to scraps of paper, and tell the story of daily life in three adjoining apartments in Chicago.

There's nothing I've ever come across that is exactly like this, but it is the perfect gift for a reader. It's normal and exhilarating, beautiful and boring (but in all the right ways). It is a whole new way of storytelling, which most readers will appreciate, and it is also a work of art.

4. Bathtub Book Caddy

I'm not a huge bathtub fan, but one of my fellow book-loving friends is, and she adores her bathtub book caddy. If your booklover is also a bathlover, this can help them relax more than ever by making it possible for them to do two of their favorite things at once. Now, they won't have to worry about dropping their book in the tub, and they will be able to read while they soak.

Do be sure to buy a caddy with a spot for a wine glass. Because wine. Trust me. Your booklover will thank you.

5. The Storymatic Game

Pick some cards, tell a story. That's the basic premise of The Storymatic Game. This is a blast to play with friends, or to use as an icebreaker to start some fascinating conversations. Teachers can also use it in the classroom, and you can take it on car trips to help keep everyone off their phones. It's also great for writers who are stuck or who want to practice coming up with plotlines out of nowhere.

Most booklovers can appreciate a good story, and this helps them take it one step further to start telling stories of their own.

6. A Map of Fictional London

So many of the best stories take place in London, and now you can get your booklover's favorite literary locations collected together on this map of fictional London. How much fun would it be for your reader to plan a trip, real or imaginary, in which they got to see all of their favorite places? It's also helpful to understand the plot of some stories to actually see where the characters are going, how far they travel, etc.

7. Clic Reading Glasses

Even if your reader doesn't require reading glasses to see the words, a good pair can ease the strain on their eyes that comes from spending a lot of time with one's nose in a book. The clic glasses are especially nice, as they come with a built-in neck band, which helps keep them on and keeps them from getting lost, and they click together in the front, rather than going on like a regular pair of glasses.

Many of the booklovers I know wear reading glasses even though they don't require them, simply to extend the longevity of their ability to read regular-sized print by easing eyestrain.

8. "I'm Reading" Mug

As an avid reader, I can tell you that there's nothing (absolutely, positively nothing!) worse than being needlessly interrupted while in the middle of a good book. Give them the hint by overtly sipping from this mug. Not only does it let people know that their intrusion is not welcome (yes, I am actually doing something, thankyouverymuch), but it also does it nicely. Booklovers tend to be a fairly polite bunch, and this will help them make their point without feeling rude.

9. The Best Bookmark Ever

This bookmark doesn't just mark the page you left off at, but it has a handy pointer that shows you exactly where on the page you left off at! They also won't fall out easily thanks to the rubber band that goes around one whole side of the book. As a busy mom of three kids, sometimes it's impossible to find my place on a page before someone else needs my help. With this bookmark, I can read at least a couple of paragraphs before my presence is demanded.

10. "Well Read" Pin

For the booklover who is proud of their reading habit but also quiet and a bit understated, this "Well Read" pin can help them communicate about their passions. It's easy to wear on a backpack, a collar, or anywhere else. It won't get in the way, but I can guarantee that other readers will see it and smile, and they might even start up a conversation.

11. Solar Powered Kindle Charger

If your reader carries a Kindle with them wherever they go, consider a solar powered charger for their favorite device. Some of these even come with cases, so the Kindle can charge and be protected at the same time. Trust me… you don't want to be around a reader who can't read because their ereader died!

Be sure to choose the charger that goes with the Kindle your booklover owns. They are available for nearly every device.

This article is from Sarah Winfrey of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

Can You Really Make a Living as an Ebook Writer?

Carrie Kirby — Fri, 01 Jul 2016 10:30:04 +0000

Ebooks have made self-publishing more accessible than ever. As recently as the 1990s, self-publishing meant paying to have thousands of physical books printed; a 1999 CNNMoney article pegged the cost at $12,000 to $30,000.

Now that the majority of books sold are electronic, you can self-publish for much less — even for free. But does that mean you have a better chance now at making money on that self-published book than you did when expenses were higher?

That all depends on how you go about it, and how lucky you are. Let's break down the process.

Where to Publish

The three main online stores that sell ebooks are Amazon's Kindle Store, Barnes & Noble's Nook Store, and Apple's iBookstore. A few books are sold on other marketplaces as well, such as the Kobo US bookstore and GooglePlay Books. Authors can also sell their books directly to consumers on their own websites.

Since 74% of all ebooks are sold on Amazon, it's often the first or only place new authors think of to sell their work. And there are a lot of benefits to selling on Amazon. Kindle books are easy to buy, and the publishing process is straightforward. On the flip side, there are so many books selling on Amazon, including those from unknown new authors (like you), that it can be hard to stand out from the crowd. Amazon demands that you exclusively sell your book through them if you want to take advantage of many benefits, such as the Kindle Lending Library and Kindle Unlimited. (Keep in mind that Amazon pays authors when people check out their books; one ebook author said the Lending Library accounted for 10% of his revenue.) The biggest disadvantage of selling with Amazon, for many, is that they just don't like the way Amazon treats its authors.

Apple's iBookstore is gaining market share, and as you would expect from Apple, books published on this platform look beautiful. But while Kindle books can be downloaded onto just about any device, readers can only access iBooks on an Apple device such as an iPad or an iPhone, which limits the market.

Nook seems to be getting squeezed out by the big two ebook stores, and should probably only be considered as a secondary place to publish. The bottom line is that you may sell more books on Amazon, but some authors don't feel like that's a good enough reason to publish there.

"I may not sell as many books with Apple — yet — but it's a whole lot more fun working with them," writes author Giacomo Giammatteo.

No matter which platform you choose, you stand to make about $2 a book if you sell your ebook for $2.99 — which is a popular price point.

How to Publish

Once you've decided where to sell your ebook, you're not done making decisions. You must decide whether to create and upload your ebook all on your own, or to pay an epublishing service or distributor to do it for you. The top services include BookBaby, Smashwords, and IngramSpark. For fees of $149 or more, these services can format your book and upload it to multiple different ebook stores. You can pay more for value-added services, such as editing, cover design, and even print-on-demand paper books.

You can also hire editing and design professionals independently for these services.

What to Publish

What your ebook is about all depends on your goals. If your motive is purely profit, there are methods of figuring out which topics are most likely to sell books. An anonymous author, who claims to be making tens of thousands of dollars a month publishing short ebooks (about 20 pages), describes his process for choosing topics on The Hustle: "I find books that are selling well, check out their tables of contents, and look at the negative reviews to see what they missed."

It may be disheartening for a hardworking writer to hear, but this successful entrepreneur says that sales are driven mainly by the cover image and the book description: "[T]he book's content is the least important part of the process."

If your motive is more to get a great idea or story out into the world, rather than just cranking out any title that will sell, you should still do your research before you sit down and start writing. If you have a blog, poll your readers on what topics they'd most like to see expanded upon in a book. If your book is in a genre or niche, such as a cookbook, study the top-selling, well-reviewed ebooks in that niche and try to figure out what you could add that hasn't already been done well. Fiction authors can also benefit by looking at already published novels in their category, to figure out both how to avoid writing books that have been done to death — and to find out what types of novels are hot right now.

How to Make It Sell

Once upon a time, writers just turned in their manuscripts to publishers and left the advertising and promotion to the company. But even authors with book contracts nowadays find themselves doing their own advertising and promotion. Before you publish your book, consider the investment of hiring a publicist to let media know about your upcoming release. If you're publicizing it yourself, write about your upcoming book on your blog, and ask other bloggers to write about it as well. You can also create a new blog just about the new book or about its topic, in order to drive traffic to your book.

Don't forget good old-fashioned advertising. Mark Dawson, who says he makes six figures selling his novels on Kindle Direct, pays $370 a day to advertise it on Facebook, according to Forbes.

Will You Make Money?

Of about 200,000 authors selling ebooks on Amazon, only about 5,000 — less than 3% — consistently earn $10,000 a year or better, according to the website Author Earnings. More than half of those are traditionally-published authors. So, only around 1% of all the people self-publishing ebooks are making much money on it.

That's not to say you can't. One approach for ending up with more money in your pocket is to keep your investment low, so that even if sales are modest, you still keep some profit. To save themselves from investing too much time, some ebook authors suggest keeping books short — since people are about as likely to pay for a 20-page book or short story as they are for a full-length novel. Others minimize their time investment by outsourcing the cover art (this guy gets all his covers designed on Fiverr) or even the content.

Again, it's all about your goals. If your dream is to delight readers with your imaginative novel or win a literary award, you're not going to dash out an outline and hire a low-cost overseas writer to flesh it out. But if your goal is to develop a passive income stream by pumping out 50 titles a year, outsourcing is probably your best option.

In the end, the answer is that you can make a living self-publishing ebooks, but like a lot of business ventures, most people who try it don't cash in. If you decide to enter self-publishing as a moneymaking venture, make sure to research the market first and put in the time to create a product that's optimized to sell.

Have you tried selling an ebook online? What was your experience like? Share with us!

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This article is from Carrie Kirby of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

5 Easiest Ways to Score Free eBooks

Samantha Stauf — Mon, 27 Jun 2016 09:30:22 +0000

I'm a bookworm. But the life of a bookworm can be an expensive one. Popular novels tend to be priced anywhere from $6 to $20. That's a pricey prospect for readers who tend to power through five, ten or more books every month.

Throughout elementary school and college, I controlled the costs of books primarily by utilizing my public library. I haven't stepped foot in a library in three years, yet I still tend to pay less than $10 every month buying books. The large majority of my reading time is spent downloading and reading free ebooks. Here are five smart reading hacks that can eliminate your monthly book expenses entirely. (See also: 8 Smart Ways to Save on Audio Books)

1. Sign Up for Kindle Family Library

Kindle Family Library is a handy feature that allows you to link up to two adult and four child Amazon accounts. Once the accounts are linked, you have access to all the eBooks that the individual has purchased in the past. This can provide months of free reading.

Once you have read all of the books in your shared library, you can then separate your accounts, wait 180 days, and then sync up with another family member or friend for access to their library.

The only downside of linking accounts is that you will need to authorize the other individual to utilize the credit and debit cards you have on file. You need to trust the individual not to go on a wild shopping spree on your Amazon account.

2. Borrow ebooks From Strangers and Friends

Both Amazon and Barnes and Noble allow individuals to lend the books they bought for 14 days. This can allow you access to more books without directly linking up your accounts.

You can supercharge your ability to borrow books by signing up for an online book lending community. Websites like booklending.com (Kindle), Lendle (Kindle), and eBookFling (Kindle and Nook), all allow you to borrow and lend books to strangers.

However, many of these lending sites (Lendle and eBookFling in particular) do expect you to lend books to other members in order to continue to borrow books yourself. If you don't already have a library of lendable books, or you don't plan on slowly expanding your library, you might not be able to utilize many of the online lending communities.

3. Read Non-Professional Stories Online

There are hundreds of solid stories self-published online for free on a variety of websites. Budding writers flock to sites like FictionPress to in order to practice the craft of writing. In exchange for an occasional review of a chapter or story, readers have the ability to dive into a potentially good book for free.

Another non-professional option for the more geek-inclined is to start reading fanfiction. Fanfiction, for those who don't know, are stories that utilize the characters and setting of already existing television shows, movies, comics, or books. If you do delve into the world of free reading by devouring fanfiction, I would suggest starting with either Fanfiction.net or Archive of Our Own.

But there are a couple potential downsides of utilizing sites like FictionPress or Fanfiction.com to find good books.

You can expect to find some sub-par writing due in part, to the fact that individuals of various skill levels publish on these types of sites. Try to choose more popular novels based on how many reviews, favorites, or follows they have.
The majority of writers publish in these forums as chapters are completed. This process often leads to many writers abandoning stories mid-way. So search for completed stories when doing searches for potential novels.

If fanfiction is for you, utilize an application within Calibre (a free eBook organizer) called FanFicFare to download the books onto your computer as either an ePub (Nook), a Mobi (Old Kindle), or an AZW3 (New Kindle) file.

4. Read Public Domain Books

You can keep your electronic bookshelf well stocked by simply sticking to reading books that are within the public domain. This means that anyone is free to use or re-use the book. You can find older classics like Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen or Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens as part of public domain.

Some of these books you can find for free on major eBook publishing sites. Others, you can locate on one of these 25 different free public domain publication websites. Many of the free-to-use websites allow you to choose which format (ePub, mobi, HTML) you would like to download the novel in.

If you're unsatisfied with the file option available on the site you choose, you can always upload the file to Calibre and convert that file to one of your choice.

5. Check Author Websites for Free Short Stories and Novels

You might want to scope out your favorite author's websites for free novels or short stories. Many authors publish their older novels or short stories online as a gift to fans or in an attempt to attract new readers.

And you can either read their stories online or utilize Internet applications like Send to Kindle or Readability to send the chapters or short stories on the author's website to your ereader.

How do you save money on ebooks? Share with us!

This article is from Samantha Stauf of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

8 Smart Ways to Save on Audio Books

Ashley Eneriz — Fri, 06 May 2016 09:00:07 +0000

Nothing beats sitting down with a new book, poring over the printed word and turning crisp pages. Unfortunately, a busy life doesn't always leave time for reading. This is why I love audiobooks so much. You can listen to your book anywhere, anytime, and while you are doing almost any task.

Audiobooks can make a long commute or a day of household chores much more enjoyable. The only downside with audiobooks is that they tend to be pricy. Here are my top tricks for saving money on audiobooks.

1. Sign Up for an Audible Free Trial

If you haven't already, sign up for a free Audible trial. Most offers include a free month of Audible, which includes a free book download. Sometimes you can score three months for free.

2. Ask an Amazon Customer Service Rep

Already used your free Audible trial? Don't give up just yet. Whenever you see a free promotion going on, ask an Amazon customer service rep if they could apply it to your account. A few months back, Amazon offered three months for free to Audible. Several of the Slickdeals.net board members said that all they did was ask an Amazon customer service rep if they could be considered eligible for the promotion, and they were given the promotion, despite having done an Audible free trial in the past.

I asked, too, but did not get three free months. Instead, I got a discounted membership for $7.49 a month for the first three months. It's always worth asking if there are new promotions you can take advantage of.

3. Look for Special Deals

At one point, as an Audible member, they offered me special discounts on credits, and twice, I tried to cancel my membership, but they offered me $20 in credit to stay. It's a good idea to add them to your safe list for emailing, since they might send you a special offer to motivate you to renew your membership. (See also: The 8 Best Books for Entrepreneurs)

4. Get Free Audiobooks With Overdrive

Many libraries use Overdrive, which allows library cardholders to check out eBooks and audiobooks. The best part about using Overdrive is that you will not have to pay late fees. When your book loan expires, you just lose access to it. However, you can renew it as many times as you need to, and will gain instant access to the audiobook, unless others have it on hold.

5. Use Multiple Library Cards

Many people might know about Overdrive, but not too many people know that each library has their own selection inside Overdrive. I am lucky enough to be a member of three different libraries, and each one can be connected to the Overdrive app on my phone. Different books are offered between the three libraries, which expands my options. Also, I can put a book on hold under each card, allowing me to get the book faster.

6. Whispersync for Voice

Sometimes Amazon will offer the kindle and audible version of a book for less than just the standard $14.95 per Audible credit. Most traditionally published books have high Kindle prices, but they often regularly get discounted. For example, Fern Michael's Balancing Act is on sale for $5.99 and you can add on Audible narration for only $3.49. This means you will pay $9.48 for both, which is certainly less than the $11.95 Audible price.

7. Kindle Unlimited

For $9.99, you can get unlimited access to over one million books and 1,000 audiobooks. And there are several, often overlooked, indie-published books available there, too. However, you will also find bestselling books, such as the Harry Potter series and even Water for Elephants, which allows Kindle Unlimited members the opportunity to read and listen for free. If you are unsure about the Kindle Unlimited membership, you can try it free for 30 days.

8. Swap With a Friend

If you and your friend are both into audiobooks, you can swap the hard copies of audiobook CDs or give each other the sign-in to your Audible account. This way you can get one more use out of your audiobook before banning it to your virtual bookshelf forever. (See also: 11 Great Apps for Book Lovers)

Audiobooks are a great way to pass the time, whether you are stuck in traffic or have to tackle your spring cleaning to-do list. Audiobooks can also help you reach your reading goals when life is busy.

Have you listened to a great audiobook lately? We want to hear about it.

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This article is from Ashley Eneriz of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

6 Great Side Jobs for Book Lovers

Brittany Lyte — Mon, 04 Apr 2016 09:30:30 +0000

Bookworms and knowledge seekers, rejoice! You can make money off your insatiable thirst for a good story. No matter your day job, there are lots of ways to earn a little extra side cash by capitalizing on the very things you like to do in your free time — namely, reading. Here are several side gigs that are made for cash-strapped book lovers. (See also: 17 Cool Jobs for Book Lovers)

1. Blogger

Bloggers are a dime a dozen these days. But talented bloggers are actually quite valuable. If you have the foresight and the skill to make sense of life's little intricacies, or the daily happenings in the news — and if you can write about it with gusto, ease, and good grammar — there's a special place for you in the bookmarks bar of countless people perusing the Internet.

Further, if you have something smart and interesting to say, and you're not going to just regurgitate what's already been said, then you can make it. And these very qualities will help you attract a following. That's the hardest part of cracking into the blogosphere business. But once you've cultivated a following with your stellar content, there are several ways to go about making a few extra cents. From ads and affiliate links, to product reviews and targeted social media promotion, you'll be on your way to supplementing your income in no time.

2. Museum Tour Guide

A part-time tour guide gig at your local museum might just be the perfect way to earn an extra chunk of cash while bridging the gap between modern life and the world in your favorite history books.

3. Bookstore Clerk

A sincere love of literature will land you an interview, at the very least, for a job at your local bookstore. If you're up for the challenge of helping customers find a literary adventure that suits their specific interests, and if you think you'd actually enjoy it, then the part-time bookstore clerk gig is made for you. Bonus: A coveted discount on books and other merchandise is a staple perk of the job.

4. Copy Editor

Grammar enthusiasts and punctuation snobs make for astute copy editors. And they're among the first to truly appreciate how important this job of proofreading for spelling, grammar, and content truly is. If you've any doubts, pick up a copy of any local newspaper that has done away with the position due to budgetary restraints. Quite often, copy editor-less content is painfully comical due to spelling and grammar mistakes. Newsletters, newspapers, books, and internal business communications are just a few examples of the kind of copy that needs editing. Look for advertised gigs or advertise your services directly to the folks who run these sort of operations.

5. Writer

To the esteemed reader, writing might feel like a 360-degree role reversal. But if every great writer is a dedicated reader, the saying probably rings just as true for readers who dabble in writing, right? News stories, book reviews, advertising copy, guest blog posts, corporate newsletter content, poetry, short stories — the options for the for-profit freelance writer are endless.

6. Translator

If you are fluent in a language, especially one that's somewhat obscure, you can earn extra income online by seeking out translator jobs. Translatorgigs.com, Fivver, and Freelancer.com are great places to begin your search for gigs.

What other jobs would be perfect for bookworms? Share with us in the comments!

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This article is from Brittany Lyte of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread: